For many people, particularly for women, it is often more important for footwear being worn to be in accordance with personal taste, and to be coordinated with other garments worn and accessories being carried, than for it to be very comfortable. With sandals or “flip-flops,” it is generally accepted by large numbers of people that such footwear can be quite uncomfortable, which is evidenced by the many blogs that are returned by an internet search of that issue (see e.g., the commentary on “Yahoo! Answers” for the subject “Do flip flops always hurt?”).
The typical pair of flip flops consist of a generally flat sole, to which is connected a pair of straps or an integrated strap arrangement. One end of each of the straps is respectively connected to the sole, proximate to each side of the heel region. The other end of the straps may be interconnected, and which are furthermore coupled to the sole near its front, using a post, or what is more commonly referred to as a “thong.” The straps are thus configured to loop over the top of the wearer's foot, while the thong is configured to be received between the wearer's big toe and second toe, with the sole being shaped to provide support for the entirety of the platform provided for the wearer's foot. These flip flops are not only worn at the beach to thereat be quickly removed to enjoy the sand and water, but are also often worn in a public shower, and at other casual outings, at restaurants, etc. Sandals are similarly constructed, but typically also include an additional strap that may be secured about the wearer's ankle. Those two terms—“sandals” and “flip flops” are used interchangeably herein, with that distinction in mind, as the craft system of the present invention may be utilized on the upper ankle strap of a sandal, as well as the straps that loop over the top of the wearer's foot for a simple flip flop.
In view of the expense of purchasing numerous pairs of different styled/colored flip flops, and the requisite storage requirements, there have been a number of prior art inventions that have sought to provide interchangeability with respect to an upper portion of a sandal, to economically leverage the use of a single pair of footwear. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,011,281 to King teaches providing different decorative facings which may attach onto the straps using snaps, so that it may be worn on different occasions and may thus appear differently. U.S. Pat. No. 6,769,204 to Phillips similarly teaches attachment of a decorative “ribbon” using Velcro.
However, most of the prior art sandal arrangements that provide some type of interchangeability to provide various different styles and appearance, do not address the comfort thereby provided to the wearer, particularly with respect to the bottom of the straps. Moreover, those arrangements typically only address one limited aspect of the appearance of the sandal.
The novel sandal crafting system and method of construction disclosed herein also achieves interchangeability with respect to the upper portion of a flip flop or sandal, but does so to a greater extent to provide increased customization, while simultaneously increasing the comfortability of the footwear to the wearer.